News Information and Media Site: Phoning it in … and the Connecticut connection

From NBC's Chuck Todd, Mark Murray and Ben Kamisar

FIRST READ: Trump takes center stage in Virginia governor's race in closing stretch

In the last 24 hours, Virginia's contest for governor has suddenly turned into a story about Donald Trump.

And that's become great news for Democrat Terry McAuliffe and bad news for Republican Glenn Youngkin.

It all began when Trump called into a Steve Bannon-headlined event Wednesday in Virginia for Youngkin, in which attendees recited the Pledge of Allegiance to a flag apparently used at the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

On Thursday, Dem nominee Terry McAuliffe demanded Youngkin to disavow that Jan. 6 flag, and McAuliffe's campaign even produced a TV ad on Trump's words praising Youngkin at the event.

And then later Thursday afternoon, Youngkin released a statement saying it's "weird and wrong" to pledge allegiance to a flag connected to Jan. 6. "As I have said many times before, the violence that occurred on January 6 was sickening and wrong," he said.

Rachel Mummey/Reuters

Why is this Trump storyline good news for McAuliffe and bad news for Younkgin?

A Fox News poll of Virginia released Thursday, which has McAuliffe ahead of Youngkin by just 5 points among likely voters, finds Donald Trump to be the most unpopular figure of all the politicians it tested in the state.

Terry McAuliffe: 52 percent favorable, 44 percent unfavorable among likely voters
Joe Biden: 50 percent favorable, 48 percent unfavorable
Glenn Youngkin: 48 percent favorable, 45 percent unfavorable
Ralph Northam: 47 percent favorable, 45 percent favorable
Donald Trump: 44 percent favorable, 53 percent unfavorable.

And just in case Trump's fav/unfav numbers in Virginia look familiar, Biden beat Trump in the state by almost that same exact margin in 2020 – 54 percent to 44 percent.

Terry McAuliffe desperately wants this race to be about Trump. And the former president gave him a hand with that phone call and event.

The Connecticut connection

At 1:45 pm ET, President Biden delivers remarks in Hartford, Conn., to promote his "Build Back Better" legislative agenda and emphasize the importance of reducing child-care costs.

It's worth noting: With Congress (mostly) out of town, this is Biden's third public speech this week – after talking about the supply chain (on Wednesday) and the coronavirus (on Thursday).

So the White House is filling the messaging vacuum, but only barely.

Tweet of the day: Bill Clinton hospitalized

Data Download: The numbers you need to know today

5 points: That's Democrat Terry McAuliffe's lead over Republican Glenn Youngkin among likely voters in Virginia's gubernatorial contest, 51 percent to 46 percent, per a Fox News poll.

50 percent: The share of Virginia likely voters who approve of Biden's job performance, according to the same poll.

44 percent: The increase in the Consumer Price Index for meat, poultry, fish and eggs over the last two years.

0.5 percent: The percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for rent between August and September, a figure that the New York Times notes is a record over the past two decades.

52 percent: The portion of Americans in a new Gallup poll who believe the government is doing too many things , an inversion from last year when 54 percent said the government should be trying to solve more problems.

44,822,950: The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the United States, per the most recent data from NBC News and health officials. (That's 93,935 more since yesterday morning.)

726,379: The number of deaths in the United States from the virus so far, per the most recent data from NBC News. (That's 2,315 more since yesterday morning.)

405,444,558: The number of total vaccine doses administered in the U.S., per the CDC. (That's 1,073,311 more since yesterday morning.)

9,319,172: The number of booster vaccine doses administered in the U.S., per the CDC. (That's 415,298 more since yesterday morning.)

56.7 percent: The share of all Americans who are fully vaccinated, per the CDC.

68.1 percent: The share of all U.S. adults at least 18 years of age who are fully vaccinated, per CDC.

ICYMI: What ELSE is happening in the world?

Thanks to redistricting, West Virginia Republican Reps. Alex Mooney and David McKinley will face off next year in a member-on-member primary.

Texas Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee's district could also be gerrymandered to the point she'd be forced into a primary against fellow Democratic Rep. Al Green.

The White House is pushing Congress to reach a deal on the Democratic spending bill soon

A Southlake, Texas school leader told its teachers to balance Holocaust books with 'opposing' views.

America is rejoining the United Nations Human Rights Council, a few years after then-President Trump withdrew over criticism with how the body handled Israel.

Texas' strict abortion law will remain in place (pending appeal) as a panel of federal judges hear the federal government's challenge to it.

Former President Trump will be deposed Monday in protesters' lawsuit claiming a 2015 assault by his security guards.